


To Causing a Commotion

by kbs_was_here



Series: The Faberryman Family [3]
Category: Glee
Genre: Family, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-20
Updated: 2013-04-20
Packaged: 2017-12-09 00:48:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/768040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kbs_was_here/pseuds/kbs_was_here
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kaylee brings someone controversial home from college.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To Causing a Commotion

**Author's Note:**

> This was written during season one, in the pre-Beth era.

Kaylee Puckerman-Fabray had never been so nervous in her entire life.  
  
Not even the time in second grade, when she was responsible for properly folding the American flag when it came down off the flagpole. Not even the time when she was ten and accidentally broke three strings on her dad's guitar when she was showing it to her friend, Connor. Not even while she waited for her acceptance letter to Juilliard.  
  
No, she'd never been as nervous as she was, this moment, standing on the doorstep to her parents' house, the Saturday of President's Day weekend of her senior year of college. She was twenty-one years old and still so very eager for parental approval.  
  
Her entire life, she'd been told she was free to love anyone she wanted, as long as they loved her. It didn't matter if they were male or female, black or white, short or tall, there were no limits to love. She knew that. She knew they truly believed it.  
  
Still, she wasn't sure how this would all go over. With a glance over at the young man next to her, she took a breath. "Ready?"  
  
He nodded.  
  
Kaylee rang the bell. After a brief moment of silence, there was what sounded like a small stampede rushing for the door. The doorknob rattled, but didn't turn.   
  
From the other side, a small voice said, "You have to unlock it up here."  
  
"I did!"  
  
"This one?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"You broke it."  
  
"Did not!"  
  
"Then why won't it open? Huh?"  
  
"I don't know!"  
  
"Mom is going to be mad."  
  
"I didn't do anything to it!"  
  
"MOM! Mark broke the door!"  
  
"I did not, Crash!"  
  
"Don't call me that!"  
  
"Ow!"  
  
"HEY!" It was a third, older female voice that interrupted. "Look at me!" The arguing stopped, immediately. "Go see if Daddy needs help."  
  
"But I wanna see Kaylee!"  
  
"Me too!"  
  
"Do you think you can calm down?" asked the woman's voice.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"We promise."  
  
Kaylee heard the sound of the lock turning, then the doorknob rattled, again. This time, the door swung open. Her mother, the one she looked most like, stood on the other side. Behind her were two dark haired, dark eyed eight year-olds, a boy and a girl.  
  
"Hi, mom," Kaylee said, before giving her a tight hug. "This..." she grabbed the hand of the guy next to her. "... is Nathan Green."  
  
Quinn smiled at him, "Nice to meet you, Nathan. Come on in. I'm Quinn. And these two are--"  
  
"Mr. Mark Quincy Puckerman-Berry," said the boy.  
  
"And Ms. Cash Quinn Puckerman-Berry," said the girl.  
  
They both wore matching sweater vests, only Mark's was purple and Cash's was red. After their introductions, they both bowed and curtsied, each alternating the actions over and over again until they broke out into giggles.  
  
Quinn ushered Kaylee and Nathan into the foyer, then took their coats. Mark whispered something to Cash, then she whispered back.  
  
"We like your vest," Cash announced, hands shoved deep in the pockets of her corduroys.  
  
Nathan looked down at his own sweater vest, blue with wide white stripes. "Thanks. I like yours, too."   
  
The stripes where the most controversial thing about his entire appearance. His hair was short and clean cut, a pair of dark rimmed glasses framed his face, the white oxford shirt under the vest was crisp and vibrant. A pair of wrinkle free Dockers were held up by a plain brown belt that matched his leather shoes.  
  
"Kids," another voice called out. "Your father wants help in the kitchen." Rachel rounded the corner, her dark features the obvious source of the twins' aesthetics.  
  
"Bye," the two chimed as the rushed past their mother into the other room.  
  
"Walk, please!" Quinn shouted after them, pure instinct.  
  
Rachel immediately threw her arms around Kaylee, "Hi, sweetie." She released her daughter and turned to Nathan. "You must be Nathan."  
  
He nodded, "Yes, ma'am."  
  
"Well, come on in and make yourself comfortable." She took him by the hand and led him into the living room. "And you tell us all about yourself."  
  
"I..." Nathan glanced over at Kaylee as the shorter woman dragged him away.  
  
"She's going to grill him, isn't she?" Kaylee asked Quinn.  
  
"Oh, she has no less than sixty-two questions for him. I saw the list."  
  
"Oh, god. She's not doing a power point, is she?"  
  
"Relax, K. She hasn't done a power point in years." Quinn put her arm around her daughter. "It's all on her iPad."  
  
The "grilling" wasn't really so bad. Rachel didn't even break out the iPad at all, since she'd committed all the questions to memory and managed to keep things moving with seamless segues. But right when Kaylee felt she could relax, her dad finally emerged from the kitchen.  
  
"Nathan?" Puck asked.  
  
"Yes, sir?" he rose to his feet and offered to shake his hand.  
  
Puck gave him a firm handshake. "You do drugs?"  
  
"Uh, no. Not at all."  
  
"Good to hear. You drink?"  
  
"Not often, sir."  
  
"Oh. You want a beer?"  
  
"Y-yes. Sure."  
  
"Come on, they're in the kitchen."  
  
And, just like that, her father was alone with her boyfriend. Kaylee really hoped Nathan didn't scare easily.  
  
Based on what their eldest daughter had told them, her parents all knew Nathan Daniel Green was a law student, Jewish, born and raised in Queens, his father was a dentist and his mother taught elementary school. Now, tonight, they'd also learned he was drug free, clean cut, and very polite.  
  
Puck didn't trust anyone who only had one beer in the course of an entire evening.  
  
Quinn worried that he was too boring when Kaylee was used to so much semi-organized chaos.  
  
And Rachel... well, Rachel was devastated.  
  
It happened after dinner, just before dessert. Mark and Cash were chattering on and on about various topics, like they did. They were particularly eager to fill their big sister in on the latest goings on in the Faberryman household. (Faberryman was a hybrid moniker that stuck around, after Kaylee's attempt to rebel against society. In fact, except for official paperwork and formal introductions, they really all preferred Faberryman, anyway.) Eventually, the topic came around to names.  
  
"What's your middle name?" Cash asked Nathan.  
  
"Daniel." It was one of the easiest questions he'd gotten all night.  
  
Cash thought about it. "So, your initials are N.D. Just like Daddy!" She and Mark exchanged a look, as if that was some kind of amazing coincidence. The girl continued. She was the more outspoken twin, for sure. "We both have Q names in the middle. Because of mom."  
  
Mark nodded, confirming what his sister had just said. "Quinn and Quincy. And Kaylee's is Rae. For mama."  
  
Nathan knew all about the seemingly unconventional dynamic of the Fabray-Berry-Puckerman  
household. Kaylee was very clear about it from the day they'd first met. She had a family that was built on love, and that was all that mattered. Yes, they sometimes drove her absolutely insane. Yes, a lot of people still didn't really get it and it made things difficult from time to time. But she knew she was fortunate to have three parents who loved and supported her, and two younger siblings who were also products of that love. Anyway, Nathan thought it sounded great. Sure, he'd never met anyone with three parents who were all in love with each other. That didn't mean it wasn't possible  
  
So, despite the nerves and the third degree (from both the parents and the kids), Nathan was feeling relatively confident in this initial family interaction.  
  
"Are you named after anyone?" Cash inquired. If her mother had a sixty-two point list of questions, this girl had a hundred and fourteen.  
  
"My grandfather."  
  
Cash considered this, then offered a look of approval. "Kaylee's named after 'Firefly'."  
  
Nathan smiled. "I know. It's one of the first things we ever talked about."  
  
The comment peaked Quinn's attention and she glanced at Kaylee. Okay, maybe he wasn't too boring.  
  
"Are you a Browncoat?" Mark asked, climbing up on his knees to reach the bread basket that sat in the middle of the round dinner table. (Rachel had insisted the family dinner table be circular, instead of the standard rectangular shape, as it would encourage equality.)  
  
Before Nathan could chime in with some kind of quote or reference to prove himself, Cash interrupted. "Mom is. She has a tattoo. It's on her--"  
  
"Leg!" Kaylee finished. "It's on her leg. Right above her ankle."  
  
Cash gave her big sister a look that said something akin to,  _Well, duh_. "I know."  
  
"I'm named after Mark Cohen. From RENT." The boy had settled back in his chair and now picked at the roll he'd fished out of the basket.  
  
"My daddy named me. After Johnny  _fucking_  Cash."  
  
Nathan nearly choked on the water he'd just sipped. Kaylee stifled a giggle. Quinn had a stern look on her face, but she was giving it to Puck, who had his hand over his mouth and was obviously trying to keep his laughter contained.  
  
Quinn shifted her gaze to the little girl. "That is not appropriate language. Especially in front of a guest."  
  
"But that's his name," Cash protested. "Daddy said so."  
  
"May I be excused?" asked Mark.  
  
"Yes," Rachel replied. "Both of you. But we're having dessert in a little bit, so don't go far."  
  
Two chairs scooted out from the table and then the duo was out of sight.  
  
"I cannot believe you told her that." Quinn's eyes were still on Puck.  
  
He put his hands up in defense. "It was something I said, one time."  
  
"You know they pick up on everything," Quinn insisted. "Like that time Rachel went to that safe sex seminar and left the brochures out and the next day I got a call from Kaylee's teacher--"  
  
"Oh my god, Mom..."  
  
"--wanting to know why a fifth grader was lecturing her classmates on dental dams. What?" The blonde looked over to see her daughter, pink cheeked and mildly fuming. "Sorry, sweetie."  
  
The twins exploded back through the dining room doorway. Mark had a scarf wrapped around his neck and a pair of glasses on his face. He had a video camera pointed at Cash, who kept saying, "Moo with me!" All three parents and even Kaylee, seemed to have an instinctual reaction to the request, and they actually began to make mooing sounds.   
  
Nathan, however, looked terribly confused. When Mark trained the camera on him, he asked, "What are you doing? Making a Harry Potter movie?"  
  
Mark shook his head. "RENT."  
  
"Oh. I've never seen it."  
  
Three jaws immediately dropped. It must have been a genetic reaction, because every single one of them had Berry blood coursing through their veins.  
  
Cash, as usual, spoke up first. "You've never seen RENT?"  
  
Nathan shook his head. "Nope."  
  
Mark eyed him, suddenly suspicious. "What's your favorite musical?"  
  
"Maybe we should have dessert," Kaylee suggested, trying to take the pressure off her boyfriend.  
  
Nathan shrugged. "I don't have one. I've actually never seen one."  
  
There was a clatter as Rachel dropped her wine glass. Fortunately, it was almost empty, and she'd been drinking white wine, so the few drops that did spill wouldn't stain the tablecloth.  
  
"I'll get the cake," Quinn said, rushing to her feet and moving to the kitchen.  
  
"I'll help." Puck was right behind her.  
  
Kaylee couldn't help but feel abandoned by her two biological parents as they left her and Nathan alone with three RENTheads. Technically, four RENTheads, because Kaylee had gone through her own period, just like her mother and siblings, of playing nothing but the soundtrack over and over again.  
  
Rachel took a good look at the young man across the dinner table. "You've lived in Queens all your life, right?"  
  
"Yes. Born and raised."  
  
"And, growing up, you probably rode the subway, right?"  
  
"All the time."  
  
"So, you know how to get to midtown."  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Then why in the world would you have never seen a musical?"  
  
Kaylee could tell her mother was trying very hard not to raise her voice. "Mama... not everyone... grew up knowing about Fosse and Sondheim."  
  
Rachel took a breath. "I'm sorry. She's right."  
  
Puck and Quinn returned from the kitchen with slices of cake dished out onto small plates. Mark and Cash helped distribute the desserts and everyone seemed to have calmed down.  
  
"I... it's not because I have anything against them. Musicals, I mean," Nathan explained. "I'm just no good at music or theatre or anything like that in general, so I never got into them."  
  
This time, five faces stared up at him in disbelief. Had Kaylee really brought home some kind of artistically deprived tone-deaf lawyer?  
  
Eventually, they learned that Nathan Daniel Green was a pretty funny guy, that his courtroom showmanship was actually fairly close to standard theatrics, that he could do magic, and that, more than anything, he loved Kaylee.  
  
This didn't stop Rachel, Cash, and Mark from trying to educate him on musical theatre. It didn't stop Puck from trying to pull the poor guy into a few painfully disastrous guitar lessons or Quinn from trying to teach him even the most basic C-Scale on the Steinway in their living room.  
  
Despite his obvious flaws, they eagerly accepted him into their family. Two years after that first dinner, when Kaylee called to tell them Nathan had proposed, no one cried happy tears more than Rachel. And before they were even dry, she was upstairs, flipping through her songbook, for the right song to sing at their wedding.


End file.
